The TBA House of Delegates has vacancies in several of its districts. In accordance with Article 29 of the TBA Bylaws, if no candidate files a declaration of candidacy for district delegate in a district or if there is no district delegate by reason of death, declination or other cause, the officers of the House of Delegates may fill the vacancy with the term to commence at the time of appointment. The following seats are available: 7th Judicial District (Anderson County); 9th Judicial District (Loudon, Meigs, Morgan and Roane counties); 12th Judicial District (Bledsoe, Franklin, Grundy, Marion, Rhea and Sequatchie counties); 14th Judicial District (Coffee County); 15th Judicial District (Jackson, Macon, Smith, Trousdale and Wilson counties); 17th Judicial District (Bedford, Lincoln, Marshall and Moore counties); 23rd Judicial District (Cheatham, Dickson, Houston, Humphreys and Stewart counties); 26th Judicial District (Chester, Henderson and Madison counties); 28th Judicial District (Crockett, Gibson and Haywood counties). Individuals interested in being considered for any of these positions should fill out this interest form by Aug. 19.

The Great Writ of Habeas Corpus is an extraordinary remedy that “guard[s] against extreme malfunctions in the state criminal justice systems.” Harrington v. Richter, 562 U.S. 86, 102 (2011) (internal quotation marks omitted). This case is the epitome of such an extreme judicial malfunction. We remand to the district court for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.

MURPHY, Circuit Judge. This case pits a party that potentially committed negligence (by sitting on its rights) against a party that potentially committed fraud (by making false statements to a court). An affiliate of Cambrian Holding Company held a lease to mine coal on land owned by Hazard Coal Corporation. During its bankruptcy, Cambrian proposed to sell its interest in the lease to American Resources Corporation. American Resources falsely warranted that it could obtain a mining permit. The bankruptcy court approved the lease assignment on this mistaken understanding. Hazard Coal learned later that American Resources could not lawfully mine coal. It has repeatedly tried to unwind this assignment ever since. The bankruptcy court has rebuffed every attempt. This appeal grows out of Hazard Coal’s challenge to the assignment in a separate suit. In response to that challenge, American Resources returned to Cambrian’s bankruptcy case and asked for a “declaration” that the court’s prior orders had already rejected Hazard Coal’s claims. The bankruptcy court issued this declaration clarifying its orders, and Hazard Coal asks us to review its declaration order on appeal. Although we find American Resources’ conduct troubling, we must evaluate the bankruptcy court’s order under a deferential abuse-of-discretion standard. Given that court’s closer proximity to the events, we see no such abuse. We thus affirm.

Bradley Arant Boult Cummings recently announced Scarlett Singleton Nokes as the new leader of its Government Enforcement and Investigations Practice Group and John P. Rodgers as the new leader of its Labor & Employment Practice Group. Both are partners in the firm’s Nashville office. Nokes is a former federal prosecutor in Birmingham, Nashville and Savannah, and now represents clients in a range of matters related to internal investigations, internal risk analysis, government investigations, white-collar criminal defense, regulatory and compliance issues, civil litigation matters, and enforcement actions. Rodgers handles employment-related litigation and counsels clients on termination and disciplinary decisions, as well as issues related to the Americans with Disabilities Act, Fair Labor Standards Act and Family and Medical Leave Act. He assists employers with transactional needs and devotes substantial attention to ERISA litigation.

Education leaders across the state urge parents to be mindful of a new medical waiver that must be signed by parents for school staff to provide medical care to children. Part of Tennessee’s Families’ Rights and Responsibilities Act passed this session by the General Assembly specifies that unless a law or court order demands it, a government entity, healthcare provider or any other person cannot knowingly treat, diagnose, operate on, or prescribe medication for any ailment without expressed permission by the “biological, legal, or adoptive parent or an individual who has been granted medical decision-making authority over the child under state law.” This also includes mental health and counseling services. The law only makes exceptions for emergency care, bleeding control and decisions made by a person who “reasonably relies in good faith on an individual's representations that the individual is the parent of a minor or has otherwise been granted authority to make decisions regarding a minor's health care.” WKRN Nashville has more.

This appeal stems from a petition for a parenting plan modification filed by Jacob Cipolla (“Father”). Father shares one child with Sylvia Coutras (“Mother”). The parties engaged in contentious and protracted litigation over the custody of their child. In October of 2022, a juvenile court magistrate entered an order naming Father as the child’s primary residential parent. Mother sought a rehearing before the juvenile court judge pursuant to Tennessee Code Annotated section 37-1-107 but later withdrew that request. The juvenile court subsequently entered an order awarding Father his attorney’s fees as the prevailing party. Mother appeals that ruling to this Court. Discerning no error, we affirm.

Philanthropist and former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg is giving $600 million to America's four historically Black medical schools, The New York Times reports. Through his charitable organization, Bloomberg is providing $175 million each to Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta and Howard University College of Medicine in Washington, each believed to be the largest donation made to any single historically black college or university. The foundation is also giving $75 million to Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science in Los Angeles, and $5 million to help start a new medical school at Xavier University of Louisiana in New Orleans. Meharry Medical College President and Chief Executive Dr. James E.K. Hildreth said the gift was “a major, major investment that will have generational impact.” Hildreth added that the donations and recent affirmative action decision could lead students of color seeking a “more welcoming, supportive” environment to apply to H.B.C.U.s. “I think it could have an impact on enrollment, and that needs to be matched with investments … That’s the reason we’re so excited about this.”

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has filed a lawsuit against TikTok and parent company ByteDance for failing to protect children's privacy on the social media app, The Hill reports. The government says TikTok violated the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act, which requires that services aimed at children obtain parental consent to collect personal information from users under age 13. In related news, a group of 21 states and more than 50 U.S. lawmakers on Friday backed the DOJ in another TikTok case defending a federal law that requires ByteDance to sell TikTok's U.S. assets by Jan. 19, 2025, or face a ban. Read the filing in that case.

The Columbia Peace and Justice Initiative in Maury County will host an evening with the legendary civil rights attorney Fred Gray. The in-person event will feature Gray sharing his insights and stories. All proceeds will support creation of a Thurgood Marshall Statue at the roundabout of South Main St. and East 8th St. in downtown Columbia. The event will take place Sept. 19 from 6-7:30 p.m. CDT at 101 Unity Dr., Columbia 38401. Register to attend.

Federal grants have been issued to more than 1,500 Black and minority farmers, ranchers and forest landowners in Tennessee who experienced discrimination in U.S. Department of Agriculture farm lending programs prior to January 2021, reports the Tennessee Lookout. Funds were granted to 626 producers and 958 individuals in the state who had planned to start a farming or ranching operation, for a total of 1,584 awardees. National Black Farmers Association President John Boyd called the payouts "historic" in a statement posted to the association’s website. While the statement describes the application process as “lengthy and complex, compounding the pain and frustration felt by many farmers,” Boyd said it was worth it in the end.